I hope you all had a restful and safe summer. Our teachers and staff have been busy getting ready for the new school year. I hope both students and staff alike spent some time setting new academic and professional goals for this year. The beginning of new school year is the perfect time to hit the reset button and start making strides towards those new goals. As a former Pioneer, Oak Ridge has a lot to offer and we encourage our students to get involved in athletics, clubs and extra-curricular activities. Parents and community members, I hope to see you at our school advisory council meetings (SAC) throughout the year and the evening events highlighting our students’ talents. We are here to serve you and want you to be involved.

We look forward to a great year and remember to connect with us via our school website and our social media accounts for the latest ORHS information. Additionally, you can also visit the OCPS website.

We can’t’ wait to see everyone on Tuesday, August 10, the first day of school!

With Pioneer Pride

Mr. Ben Alvarado

Pictured very top: Principal Alvarado and Athletic Director Mr. Norris had a great meeting with #alumni as we establish an active ORHS Booster Club! Lots of great things on the way #thisisoakridge

*** The 2021 Florida Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday is happening again this year from July 31 – August 9, 2021. During the period, shoppers can avoid paying sales taxes on clothes costing $60 or less, school supplies costing $15 or less and the first $1,000 of the price of personal computers - Details here.

The New Frontier – New Student Orientation

Welcome Back Pioneers! Come out to New Student Orientation, learn about how to access your Schedule (See instructions in this post) Get a Campus Tour, Receive Tech Help, and Much More!

If you are new to our main campus this is a great opportunity to see where your classes are.

We Can’t Wait To See You! #pioneerpride #weareoakridge

Oak Ridge vs Ocoee @ Home – 7:00PM

Friday, August 27

We are hosting another “Who We Play For” ECG night at Oak Ridge High School.

Shout out to Elevate Orlando for providing our Pioneer staff with lunch on Tuesday!

Questions: Howard.Noel@ocps.net

To register, follow the links above and create a account on each site. From there you will be able to select a test date, submit payment*, and print your admission ticket.

* Students on free/reduced lunch are eligible to receive two fee waivers for each test at no charge. Please see your guidance counselor to obtain a waiver.

Source: Bloomberg

Note for our Pioneers: The fastest-growing chunk of the U.S.’s $1.7 trillion student-loan pile is the one held by the oldest borrowers. There are now about 8.7 million Americans aged over 50 who are still paying off college loans, and their debt has increased by about half since 2017.

Once the new school year gets going and many of our Pioneers begin thinking about how to pay for college, we encourage them to visit our College and Career Resource Center for assistance with financial planning. This is partially so that one day they do not wind up in the same position many of these older Americans are - still paying off student loans later in life.

In light of CDC guidance and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings announcement urging all Orange County residents to wear face masks indoors, the district is also strongly urging everyone to wear a face mask when indoors including attendance during Meet the Teacher and other Back to School events.

OCPS knows that many of you still have back to school questions surrounding COVID and safety so the district has created a frequently asked questions webpage that addresses a lot of those and other concerns here - ocps.net. If any of your questions are not answered you can email questions@ocps.net.

* Please know, the School Board and the Superintendent continue to monitor the situation closely as the first day of school approaches Tuesday, August 10.

Topics Include:

Click here to watch.

Source: Spectrum News - Read full story

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Wednesday, July 28 introduced its new Rental Assistance Finder, a search tool* anyone can use to quickly access more than 700 emergency rental assistance programs local, state and tribal governments have launched nationwide.

*The search tool allows users to filter assistance programs by location to find help near them.

** Housing help: A list of Central Florida housing resources

With the first day of school for our Pioneers only just six days away, we thought that we would close out this special welcome back issue with a couple of "real world" examples of how important attendance is in life.

Among all U.S. public universities The University of Florida ranks #6 in the nation according to U.S. News & World Report. And within UF, their College of Engineering is one of the largest and most dynamic engineering programs in the nation.

To get accepted to UF, and especially to their College of Engineering, is very difficult and once one gets in, they expect a top effort from all students. As an example, the engineering students' attendance at lectures is tracked daily and counts for 20% of the final grade. Attendance is taken at the end of class when students must complete a math problem based upon the content covered that day in class. Getting it right earns 1 point while getting it wrong earns a 1/2 point. An absence means a zero. If a student has trouble making it to class, it will not take very long to receive a poor grade and because they have so many students from all over the world applying to get in, poor grades can quickly lead to suspension.

The PepsiCo company is ranked #44 among America's Fortune 500 companies - these are the biggest companies in the country. Like the University of Florida's College of Engineering, they too take daily attendance very seriously. Except at PepsiCo, accumulating points works against you, not for you. An absence means 1 point and being tardy yields 1/2 point. The points stay with you all year and are not erased until the following January. Too many points means dismissal as they need their people at work and on time every business day.

The lesson for our Pioneers? It is so important to build good attendance and on time habits throughout high school. It will make all the difference in this year's grades and positive habits like these learned now will pay off big in college and in the workforce!

Once you get your education it's going to open up so many doors for you. And the sky's the limit. So that's what I want to deliver to students.

The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.

A bend in the road is not the end of the road unless you fail to make the turn.

Laughter is an instant vacation.

Copyright Notice

Reproduction of this material, either written or electronically, including the general layout, graphics, analyses, and content topics without the express approval of Target Performance Systems, Inc., a Florida corporation, and OCPS - Oak Ridge High School is forbidden without written consent. Thank you for your support of the Orange County Public Schools and especially Oak Ridge High School. Please contact Mrs. Laurene Householder at laurene.householder@ocps.net with any questions related to the program.

Oak Ridge High School | Ms. Bellinger, Principal | 407.852.3200 | ORHS Website